1. Persuasion in Organizational Settings
“I have this lovely swamp land in Florida you might be interested in.”

2. Definitions and Initial Considerations
“To persuade is to limit the options that are perceived as acceptable.” Hamilton
Contrasted with coercion and informing
Key issue--do you view persuasion as essentially a rational or a non-rational enterprise?

3. Modes and Venues for Persuasion
Speaking to convince versus speaking to actuate
The attitude-behavior dichotomy
Persuasion happens in:
public settings
formal one-on-one settings
informal settings

4. Yale School of Persuasion Research
Carl Hovland and colleagues
Attention
Comprehension
Acceptance
Retention
Action
Criticisms of the model

5. Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
Physiological needs
Security Needs
Social or love needs
Esteem needs
Self-actualization needs

6. Cialdini’s Principles of Persuasion
Reciprocation
Commitment and Consistency
Social Proof
Liking
Authority
Scarcity

7. Monroe’s Motivated Sequence
Attention Step
Need Step
Satisfaction Step
Visualization Step
Action Step

8. Monroe’s Motivated Sequence: Illustrated
Persuasive speech on improving workplace safety
Attention: Personal experience of workplace accident
Need: Severity and numbers of workplace injuries--stats, case studies, projections
Satisfaction: solve through aggressive employee ed. and strict OSHA enforcement
Visualization: lower worker comp costs
Action: call insurance co., get OSHA training packages

9. Alternative Organizational Patterns
Problem solution format
Criteria satisfaction format
Cause-effect-solution format
Indirect sequence
establish the problem
outline criteria for response
disqualify alternatives
present the unpopular solution

10. Speaker Credibility Extrinsic credibility--prior to…
Intrinsic credibility--during…
Dimensions of credibility:
trustworthiness
competence/expertise
dynamism
objectivity
organizational rank

11. Final Thoughts Audience analysis is key to effective persuasion
Ethics should not be an afterthought
Aristotle was probably right
ethos
pathos
logos